Sun Xueling on 95 blocked accounts with malicious narratives on Singapore’s leadership transition

No further posts from the network of 95 accounts carrying malicious narratives on Singapore’s leadership transition were detected after May 10. Investigations have not found any evidence that Singaporeans or persons based in Singapore are responsible for the 95 accounts. Minister of State for Home Affairs Sun Xueling gave this update in reply to an MP’s questions in Parliament on Wednesday (Aug 7), saying these accounts had "low reach" in Singapore's local information space. She said this episode is a reminder that Singapore is vulnerable to Hostile Information Campaigns (HICs) because of its small, open and highly digitally connected society. The ubiquity of technologies such as the Internet, social media and artificial intelligence has made preparing for and carrying out HICs much easier, she added. Ms Sun said legislative levers to prevent, detect and disrupt HICs are important but public vigilance against foreign interference is equally important. She urged Singaporeans to be discerning when consuming and disseminating information online. They should always fact-check the information against a credible source to see if it is accurate and authentic, she added.